


When you smile

by Wheresmycow2



Series: When you smile [1]
Category: Cabin Pressure
Genre: Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-08-16
Updated: 2012-08-16
Packaged: 2017-11-12 07:15:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/488149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wheresmycow2/pseuds/Wheresmycow2
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Being a pilot, you start with a bag full of luck and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill the bag of experience before you empty the bag of luck.</p>
            </blockquote>





	When you smile

**Author's Note:**

> Beta-ed by the brilliant [chess_ka.](http://archiveofourown.org/users/chess_ka/pseuds/chess_ka)

The weather is perfect and the night sky of Fitton filled with stars when Douglas lands Gerti after the flight back from St. Petersburg. Right after touch down, Douglas hears Martin let out a deep sigh, as if he’s been holding his breath.

“I know,” Douglas says. Because he indeed does exactly know how it feels to land safely the next time after an emergency landing that could have gone horribly wrong. Even after more than thirty years of flying and at least a dozen emergency landings, he’s still feeling it himself.

As he taxies Gerti down the familiar runway , he continues: “It’s like fearing that you may have magically escaped death, but that fate, or God, or any other power will try again. You need the reassurance of a normal, easy landing to believe it really wasn’t meant to be your last day on earth.”

“Yes.” From the corner of his eye, he can see Martin nodding.

“So, will it go away, the fear?” Martin asks. “Because I’m very glad you landed her now, Douglas, but I can’t leave all landings to you from now on.”

Douglas chuckles. “The fear will be gone long before your next landing. It’s always only the landing right afterwards. Trust me. “

“Okay. Good. That’s good to know.”

A few minutes later they finish the post-landing checks, flick off the lights and then stay seated for a bit in the dark. It’s another thing Douglas is quite familiar with. You can walk away, or sometimes even run away as fast as you can from an emergency landing, but you must take your time appreciating the next, perfect landing. He knows that Carolyn knows as well, as he hears her ushering an overly excited Arthur off the plane and watches them a moment later walking towards the portacabin. Post landing moments like these are for the pilots, and the pilots only.

“Douglas?”

“Yes?”

“I couldn’t have done it without you, without everything I have learned from you. I… I hate to say it, but If I am ever to become a really great pilot, I owe half of it to you.”

Douglas grins. “Only half? Oh, I’d say at least sixty percent, Sir. “

Martin doesn’t protest, and Douglas turns to look at him. With his profile sharply outlined by the airport’s lights, his captain keeps silent, seemingly lost in thoughts.

Douglas leans back in his chair. “You know,” he says, serious now, “being a pilot, you start with a bag full of luck and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill the bag of experience before you empty the bag of luck. And in St. Petersburg, you have earned yourself a nice amount of experience, and it wasn’t because you used up a whole lot of luck. So you’re doing fine, Martin. You did a terrific job today, and I must admit I feel rather proud of you. “

Martin makes a sound somewhere between a giggle and a sob, and Douglas turns his head to face his captain, to find Martin smiling at him. And it’s not just any smile. Martin’s whole face is radiating sheer honest-to-god giddy happiness. It’s a breathtakingly attractive smile and Douglas can’t but smile back and stare until Martin’s smile broadens even further.

“Thank you. Thank you, Douglas,” Martin says.

* * *

Later, back in his big empty house, Douglas convinces himself there was nothing really special about Martin’s smile. It was just a very nice smile. And Martin had done an exemplary job today, saved his own life and those of his crew, he was happy and proud and this is obviously how a very happy and ridiculously proud Martin smiles. Knowing Martin, it probably won’t happen again in the near future.

And so Douglas successfully silences a small voice at the back of his head that had whispered something silly about really, really wanting and maybe even _needing_ , to see that smile again.


End file.
